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May 14, 2006

Network Neutrality - Keep the Internet Free!!!

I don't normally post about current issues on here, but this is pretty scary. It's so scary, in fact, that it's hit the news, and bloggers all over the world are rapidly blogging about it right as I type this.

It's called Network Neutrality (equivalently "Net Neutrality," "Internet Neutrality" or "NN"). And quite frankly, the Internet as we know it, may be coming to an end very soon - unless we do something about it.

It's become such a HOT issue recently that popular rock bands like R.E.M. have joined the broadening coalition of people demanding that Congress pass a law to protect Network Neutrality.

Network Neutrality In a Nutshell:

Currently, you can "freely" pick and choose which websites you want to visit. For example, if you like Google better than you do Yahoo!, then you go to Google. If you prefer amazon.com over barnsandnoble.com, you go to amazon.com. Pretty simple.

BUT, if Network Neutrality is abandoned, then you won't be able to choose! Your access to one of your favorite websites could be painfully slowed down, or worse yet, blocked completely!

Yep, and that's a fact, Jack!

So welcome to the fight over "Network Neutrality," which is unfortunately, one of Washington's most recent obsessions.

Network Neutrality is a debate centered on whether or not it's more "neutral" to let consumers (i.e., you and me) access all Internet websites equally, or to let providers (in most cases, a duopoly of the local phone & cable companies) discriminate against our choices if they feel it'll make them more money. This is a real threat!

"Congress is pushing a law that would abandon the Internet's First Amendment -- a principle called Network Neutrality that prevents companies like AT&T, Verizon and Comcast from deciding which Web sites work best for you -- based on what site pays them the most. If the public doesn't speak up now, our elected officials will cave to a multi-million dollar lobbying campaign."

This video is a very informative and crucial look at Network Neutrality.

Network Neutrality Facts:

A House committee has twice voted AGAINST preserving your Internet freedom. However, the second vote was much closer because of a major public uprising instigated by the SavetheInternet.com Coalition.

Net Neutrality Coalition Members:

Craig from Craigslist, MoveOn.org, Gun Owners of America, consumer watchdogs, church groups, etc. So far, over 650,000 people have signed a petition to Congress. Over 5,000 friends have joined Savetheinternet.com’s MySpace page, and thousands of blogs, vlogs and websites have linked to the coalition.

Google, Amazon, Yahoo, eBay, and others are also fighting on the side of Net Neutrality. With a vote by the full House coming soon, and with the Senate bill just starting to move, your support in favor of Net Neutrality is crucial.

Link this post to your website, vlog or blog to help spread the facts.

Contact congress with this quick & easy form to share your thoughts on Net Neutrality!

The Nonsense:

AT&T's CEO says, "The Internet can't be free."

Apparently, he's on a different planet than we are. Not to mention, AT&T had nothing to do with creating the Internet. In fact, AT&T actually turned down the contract to build it! And likewise, Verizon and Bellsouth both had ZERO involvement.

These companies had DIDDELY-SQUAT to do with making the Internet, yet, now they want to CONTROL it.

For I, and I alone, will choose which websites I like, and which websites I visit. Not them!

Additional Silly Nonsense:

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, consumers began to attach new devices to their Internet connections, and use Internet services that were not in existence in the mid-1990s.

The reaction of many broadband operators was to impose various contractual limits on the activities of their subscribers. In the best known examples, Cox Cable disciplined users of virtual private networks, and AT&T, as a cable operator, warned customers that using a WiFi service for home-networking constituted "theft of service" and was a federal crime!